Dearly Beloved
by Fen Jien Ren
Summary: / 100 THEMES CHALLENGE / It's Grimmjow and Ulquiorra's anniversary and news about their engagement is spreading wildly! How will Ulquiorra handle this? "I can do this!" he whispered to himself, gathering courage, "NO! I can't possibly do this!"


**Dearly Beloved.**

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"_GOD the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Ghost, bless, preserve, and keep you;  
the Lord mercifully with his favor look upon you, and fill you with all spiritual benediction and grace;_  
_that you may so live together in this life, that in the world to come you may have life everlasting.  
Amen."_

-- Catholic Wedding Ceremony Closing --

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Ulquiorra was a man of routine. Some had already accused him of having a serious case of obsessive-compulsive disorder, but he swore he was never aggressive. He just always had steps to follow on almost everything, and it wasn't because he loved doing it that way. It was just because he saw it more civilized and neat when he did things with an order. He never cared if people didn't do it his way, he wouldn't bite, and he had his boyfriend to prove that to the world.

He took his same old routine back home, carrying the attaché case he had been using ever since it was bought with the white tailcoat, which he always favored among anything else, hugging his figure. His green eyes stared up at the skies, adoring the twinkling garnish up on the darkness of the night. He held briefcase close to his chest, his eyes losing their usual coldness for a moment as his mind flew forward to the man he was about to come home to.

"Ulquiorraaaaaaa!!!" a cheery, feminine voice called out, making the pale man snap out of his dreams and whip around. Ulquiorra stared at the approaching form of Neliel Tu Odershvank, swaying a hand high up in the air just like how she'd always greet him if not by _glomping_ him. Luckily, after telling the woman how he hated getting jumped on, suffocated, and squeezed to death, the green-haired tried her best to comply to his wish... but that was only after the fifth time when he almost lost it.

"Pleasant evening," he greeted.

"Yo!" the bubbly green-haired woman saluted coyly as she greeted, standing on the tip of her toes as she winked and stuck her tongue out. "I heard from Orihime-chan that today's your three-year anniversary with Grimm-kitty!" she chirped, bouncing a little on the tip of her toes, and bent forward to look up the pale face that was always hidden under dark raven hair. "Is it true?"

"Yes, it is." The emerald-eyed replied, inching away. "Why does it concern you?"

"Well, I just want to congratulate you guys!" she beamed, "I'm so happy for you two!"

"Thank you." Ulquiorra softened his features, trying to be as nice as possible with the woman. He didn't hated her—not because he liked Neliel or because he can't or couldn't, but the reason why was that he shouldn't. She was his lover's best friend. He did his best to understand and to control the flow of deadly envy towards her, but still... "I shall carry your blessings to him."

"So," Neliel straightened her back, raising a finger to her pouted lips, "when are you two gonna get married?"

The pale man gaped, emerald-eyes going wide. "...Married?"

"Had he not proposed to you yet?"

"Pro...pose?" He blinked. "Like... engagement?"

After almost an awkward half an hour conversation, Ulquiorra bid the woman farewell and continued to walk down the old path. As he was nearing his home, the stoic man ceased on his tracks and looked down at his feet. Somehow, the pressure or excitement that goes along this anniversary thing took over his system. He gulped, clutching his things tight, and wondered if he should expect something from his lover.

Three years long relationship isn't that special to most, but in his case it was more than he could hope for. Grimmjow was the very first person he dated, the man who took all his _firsts_. It might be totally cliché and overly romantic, but even though the blue-haired moron was the bane of his existence from the very second he first met him up until now, Ulquiorra was certain that this life he was sharing now with Grimmjow was a dream come true.

He raised a hand to his chest, feeling his heart beating wildly underneath.

"_When are you two gonna get married?"_

Marriage. It maybe girly, but he had been dreaming of it since he was a kid... although at that time he was imagining a beautiful woman as his wife. He witnessed some of his relatives getting married, so he supposed his fascination with it came from there.

What if Grimmjow insisted on staying in for the day because he was preparing things for his proposal? Just imagining his lover down on one knee with a beautiful ring cradled in a box made his face burn, Ulquiorra wondered what in the hell he would do if it really happens. It wasn't everyday one's lover asks a hand for marriage, so he supposed that he'd probably freak out... or faint, most likely.

Beautiful emerald eyes twitched.

_What am I thinking?_

Who said they were going to get married? No one did! Grimmjow hadn't asked him yet, and Ulquiorra was sure he hadn't asked him either. Neliel was just asking a common question for couples, and it was so wrong to assume things already. Yes, it was one of his dreams to get married, but he hadn't been thinking about it lately. Actually, he hadn't even thought of it once ever since he and Grimmjow started dating. Why would he start worrying about it now?

"_...you two gonna get married?" _his heart began to beat quickly as Neliel's voice reverberated in his mind,_ "...married? ...married? ...married?"_

_I'm going to ruin everything._ Ulquiorra groaned and slapped himself. He really did suck big time on this department. He was starting to wish he had Szayel on his side, or maybe even Gin! It didn't really matter who, he just needed someone who was well informed about this _strange_ thing. Clearly, as intelligent as his acquaintances hailed that he was, he was totally stupid about love—no, forget being stupid, he was failure.

Oh, he was close to home.

He swallowed, looking at the closed door with gathered courage, and took one step closer.

_I can do this._

He took another step.

"_...Married... Married... Married... Married... Married... Married... Married... Married... Married... Married... Married... Married..."_

And then another.

"_...Married... Married... Married... Married... Married... Married... Married..."_

Then another.

"_...Married... Married... Married... Married... Married...."_

Another.

"_...Married... Married... Married... Married... Married... Married... Married... Married... Married... Married..."_

Another.

"_...Married... Married... Married... Married... Married... Married... Married... Married... Married..."_

Just a little more.

"_...Married... Married... Married... Married..."_

Almost there.

"_...Married...."_

Last one.

"_Ulquiorra," Grimmjow gently took his hand and knelt down, "Will you marry me?"_

_Gah!_ Ulquiorra flipped around and buried his face on his hands, dropping his things on their porch. He felt his whole body burn except for his chest that felt totally cold and numb due to too much pressure. God, this was bad for his heart! But he couldn't help it. With how his conversation earlier with Neliel went, it was impossible not to be nervous.

...Maybe this would be enough grounds to strangle Neliel to death and get away with it on court! Who the hell was he kidding, telling himself that he could do this?! This was impossible! He couldn't _possibly_ go through this! Where did his _trusty_ brain even retreated to?! He couldn't think of anything at all!

_Pull yourself together._

The pale man breathed out, the simple gesture working wonders right away. His heart eventually calmed and resumed with a calm rhythm, spreading warmth all over his body. He closed his eyes and continued to breathe deeply, soothing more of his nerves and worries away.

After a while, Ulquiorra began picking up his things and turned to the door, slowly twisting and pushing the door open. He peeked inside and found out that the lights were out. Seeing this, he felt anxious again... even worse than before. He could hear his heart pumping in his ears and his head felt light. He was scared, nervous... excited?

Had Grimmjow planned something big for him?

He gulped, his muscles tensing and stopping. What would happen if he opens the door further? If he announces his arrival to his lover by calling out or making even a small sound, would he be surprised to see that all of the important people in their lives was there inside, waiting for him? Would he receive gifts and get showered by millions of wishes? What would he do? What would he say? Would he hug them one by one? Would he kiss Grimmjow? Would he cry? Would he say _yes _if Grimmjow goes down to his knees and offer him a box holding a ring?

Ulquiorra clenched his fists and bit his lip. The two of them still got a long way to go though, and... come to think of it, Grimmjow isn't the type of person who would...

"Hey, how long are you going to stand there?" Ulquiorra stiffened at the sound of his lover's voice. Raising his head, he met a pair of beautiful blue eyes. "I made dinner."

Green eyes blinked, "...You killed what?"

"I said _I cooked dinner_!" Grimmjow snarled, his cheeks turning red. "And don't you fucking dare laugh about it!"

"When did I ever laugh at you, Grimmjow?"

"Tch. Whatever." He turned his head, "I don't want to here any complaining 'bout it either, got it?"

Ulquiorra smiled a little.

_Yeah..._

"The hell are you smiling at?!"

_I'd definitely say yes._

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**THEME 37  
"ENGAGEMENT"**

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FEN:** I'm thinking of starting another multichapter....... I curse college for stress.... DX


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